Some teaching about visualisation and using your imagination is wrong. It assumes that if we ask God to fill our imaginations, then he will. But he is Lord, and doesn't always obey our orders! Also, our imaginations can be filled by our own fantasties, or by the enemy, too. Yes, Father God gave us creative imaginations when he made us in his image. But they are [...]

When Jesus faced his final hours, he needed his friends' support. But they messed up. First, Judas betrayed him. Then the others slept while he agonised over his future. And when the Roman troops tried to arrest him, Peter sliced off a soldier's ear. Hmm. How pointless. And it gets worse. Jesus' friends all run away - and one ends up naked. Oh dear. Just what [...]

The enemy has plans for your life, the same as God has. Paul tells us in 2 Corinthians 2:11 to be alert to the devil’s schemes. And ‘schemes’ means: organized evil-doing, a settled plan. Satan had a plan for Eve and then Adam in the Garden of Eden. And it worked. He delayed the archangel Gabriel from visiting Daniel. He nearly destroyed Peter’s ministry before it [...]

I've been doing spiritual warfare for decades. But I've only recently seen real results when I 'bind the strong man' (Mark 3:27). Why? I've discovered that it isn't a method. It's a lifestyle. Last year I heard about a man who raised his wife from the dead. His friends weren't surprised that he had the faith. The miracle reflected his day-to-day walk with God. Matthew 6 [...]

In Mark 3, Jesus spoke about Satan and demons. And then he said  (v 27): ‘No one can enter a strong man's house without first tying him up. Then he can plunder the strong man's house.’ This verse explains why some people don't get healed or freed. The house represents a person who has Satan’s stuff inside - things like sickness, demons, curses, mental illness, depression, addictions [...]

Sometimes I think God's hand is on me. Other times I don't. Nehemiah and Ezra were more certain! In their books, they often say: 'The hand of the Lord was upon me.' They couldn't have played such historic roles without it. God's hand ensured: Favourable treatment from rulers and officials: see Neh 2: 8  and Ezra 7:6 Influence: see Neh 2:18 Courage: see Ezra 7:28 Help to build [...]

Jesus came to make faith simple. Fishermen, farmers and prostitutes heard him gladly (Mark 12:37). But so much contemporary teaching is mystic and based on 'new revelations'. It conceals truth from ordinary people, so the teacher stands between them and God. Jesus came get rid of mediators. He is the only way to the Father. And John 14:26 and 1 John 2:27 say that the Holy Spirit [...]

Healing is not what God does. It's who he is. He made it clear in Exodus 15:26, when he said: 'For I am the Lord, who heals you.' That's why Jesus healed everyone who asked him. He never said: 'It's not my will to heal you,' or: 'It's not the right time.' But his healing can depend on one word:  if. It precedes that promise in Exodus, above: [...]

Fish sometimes nibble the bait on the end of an angler’s hook, but are smart enough to avoid getting caught. I see that tendency in myself when I’m tempted. Do you? After all, just having a nibble of something that's potentially wrong doesn’t do any harm, does it? That’s what Lot thought. He pitched his tent towards Sodom. Only to have a nibble, of course. But he ended [...]